Transformer housing and locking means therefor



April 18, 1967 J, N, DAV|S 3,315,023

TRANSFORMER HOUSING AND LOCKING MEANS THEREFOR Filed March 23, 1964 2Sheets-Sheet l ff? l@ l,"

J. N. DAVIS April 1s, 1967 TRANSFORMER HOUSING AND LOCKING MEANSTHEREFOR- 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 23, 1964 United States Patent O3,315,023 TRANSFORMER HUSHNG AND LOCKING MEANS THIEREFR .Folin N. Davis,Pittsfield, Mass., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporationof New York Filed Mar. 23, i964, Ser. No. 354,076 S Claims. (Cl. Urt-52)This invention lrelates to transformer housings used for pad mountedtransformers and more particularly to a novel transformer housing and toa locking means for such housing.

As is well known to those skilled in the transformer art, in recentyears the underground distribution system of power has becomeincreasingly in demand, particularly for residential and retail salesdevelopments. In general, this demand has arisen because the undergrounddistribution systems eliminate the overhead wires, the transformers, thepoles and other equipment which are necessary for overhead distributionand which are considered unsightly, particularly in the newerdevelopments. In order to provide for `adequate underground distributionit is necessary either to bury transformers in vaults or else to mountthe transformer directly at ground level. As the art has developed, theground level mounted transformers have been termed pad mountedtransformers.

In many types of pad mounted transformers a large rectangular housing orenclosure is provided which is mounted on a concrete pad. A transformeris contained within the housing, sometimes in its own tank or else in aportion of the housing which is specically built for the transformer.Further, high and low voltage sections are provided in another portionof the housing. Usually all of the Wiring to and from the pad mountedhousing is carried underground, entering the housing from the preparedopenings in the concrete pad. With the Wires entering the pad fromunderground it is desirable to have separate sections within the housingfor making the vari* ous connections to and from the transformer.Further, since it is necessary to make various connection changes and toperform repairs and maintenance and the like during the use of thetransformer, it is necessary that ready access be provided to thetransformer housing. Usually such access is provided by means of hingeddoors on the front of the housingwhich provide immediate access to thehigh and low voltage sections but not to the transformer itself. Toprevent unauthorized ent-ry into the transformer housing, particularlyin View of the high voltage available within the housing, various typesof locking means have been provided on the doors of the housing.

In many residential areas the large housings are considered undesirablebecause of the extra cost involved in such housing and because theappearance is large and bulky, especially when compared to the modernhomes that such type of transformer serves. Therefore, it has been founddesirable to devise a small, compact housing for use in such residentialareas to make the transformers as inconspicuous as possible. Further, itis considered necessary to make the housing as smooth as possible toprevent injury to children who might play around the tranformer. Also itis necessary to provide ladequate locking means to prevent unauthorizedentry into the housing where contact with dangerous high voltage couldbe made. However, as will be understood it is also desirable thatauthorized entry may readily be made to the housing for maintenance andrepairs, as necessary.

It is, therefore, one object of this invention to provide a noveltransformer housing that utilizes a portion of the transformer tank as ahousing.

A further object of this invention is to provide a simple,

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inexpensive transformer housing, containing high and low voltagesections, which is attached directly to the tank of a t-ransformer.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel transformerhousing utilizing the transformer tank which has a novel locking meansto prevent unauthorized entry into the housing and yet does not have anyundesirable projecting parts.

In carrying out this invention in one form, a transformer housing isprovided utilizing portions of a transformer tank. The housing comprisesa pair of side wall members which are fastened to opposite sides of thetransformer tank and which extend substantially parallel the-refrom.Upper and lower sill members are provided, connected to the free ends ofthe side wall members. A removable front wall is provided which isengaged behind the lower sill member and contacts the upper sill member.A removable cover member is provided having -a flange for engagingbeneath the transfo-rmer tank cover and having a second flange whichextends over and en gages the removable front wall member.

Locking means are provided in the form of a lug member having a holetherethrough which is secured to and extends from the removable coverinto the housing. A second lug having a hole therethrough is secu-red toa side wall member and extends into the housing in a complementarymanner to the first lug. A third lug is provided secured to the outerportion of the same side wall and beneath the removable cover. A movablerod is provided extending from an opening in the side wall adjacent thethird lug, the rod extending through the complementary holes in both thefirst and second lugs. As will be understood, withdrawing the rod fromthe lug connected to the cover allows the cover to be removed. The endof the movable rod is provided with a locking plate having a hole whichis complementary with a hole in the third lug when the rod is in lockingposition such that a padlock may be inserted through the locking plateand the third lug to securely lock the housing closed.

The invention which it is desired to protect will be specificallypointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims appended hereto.However, it is believed that this invention and the manner in which itsvarious objects and advantages are obtained, as well as other objectsand advantages thereof, will be better understood from the followingdetailed description of a preferred embodimentl thereof especially whenconsidered in the light of the aocompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE l is a perspective View of one form of transformer housingaccording to this invention with portions broken away to show a part ofa preferred locking means:

FIGURE 2 is a top view of the transformer housing, partially in section,taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 3, showing certain features of theconstruction and locking means;

FGURE 3 is a side view partly in section showing further features of theconstruction and locking means;

FIGURE 4 is a partial exploded perspective view showing certain featuresof the removable front wall;

FIGURE 5 is a partial side view similar to FIG. 3 showing a modificationof the locking means;

FIGURE 6 is a partial perspective View of the high voltage portion ofthe transformer housing showing an insulation barrier therefor;

FIGURE 7 is a partial perspective view similar to FIG. 6 showing thebarrier in another position; and

FIG. 8 is a sectional View of the barrier showing a preferred form ofattachment to the housing.

Reference will now be made to the drawings in which like numerals areused to indicate like parts throughout the various views thereof.Referring first to FIG. l, there is shown a preferred form of thetransformer housing 1t) according to this invention. As shown in FIG. 1,the transformer housing is mounted on a concrete pad 12 and includes atransformer tank 14 having a transformer (not shown) sealed within thetank 14. In general, the transformer housing comprises the transformertank 14, a pair of side walls, 16 and 18, which are secured to the tank14 and a removable cover member 20 which extends completely over theside walls 16 and 18 and the top of the transformer tank 14, in themanner shown in FIG. 1. A removable front wall member completes thehousing, as will become apparent from the description following. Alocking means, which will be further described is provided which safelylocks the removable cover 20 to the side walls 16 and 18.

The specific construction of the preferred embodiment of the transformerhousing 10 can best be seen in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 to which reference willnow be made. As shown in these figures, the housing 1i) has the pair ofside walls 16 and 18 having flanged members 22 and 24, respectively,which are secured to the opposite sides of the tank 14, as shown mostparticularly in FIG. 2 of the drawings. The side walls 16 and 18 may besecured to tank 14 in any desired manner such as, for example, bywelding. As is shown particularly in FIGS. 2 and 3, bolt members 26 mayalso be utilized for securing side walls 16 and 18 to the transformertank 14. If bolts such as 26 are used, the bolts will preferably bewelded to the tank 14 and will be fastened within the housing, in themanner shown, to prevent tampering with such bolts.

The side walls 16 and 18 are desirably provided with channel-shapedmembers 28 and 3i) which are secured to the forward free portions of theside walls in the manner shown, especially in FIG. 4. The channelmembers 28 and 30 desirably extend inwardly from the forward freeportions of side walls 16 and 18 as best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.Removable sill members 32 and 34 are secured to the channel members 28and 38, the sill member 32 forming an upper sill while the member 34forms a lower sill against the bed 12, particularly as shown in FIG. 4of the drawings. The sill members 32 and 34 in conjunction with thechannel members 28 and 30 are used to aid in securing a removable frontwall member to the transformer housing.

As is shown, especially in the exploded view of FIG. 4, the removablefront wall 36 has an upper flange portion 38 and a lower flange portion40. The upper flanged portion 38 fits against the upper sill 32 whilethe lower flanged portion 4t) ts behind the lower sill member 34. Theremovable front wall 36 is preferably formed from a single sheet ofmetal with flanges 38 and 41) offset from the central portion, as shownespecially in FIG. 3. Preferably, side flanges 37 are provided on eachside of the central portion. The side flanges 37 of the front cover 36fit against the channel members 28 and 311 and extend exactly to the endof the walls 16 and 18 to provide a flush-fitting front wall. Ifdesired, the upper flange 38 may be provided with a quick-release member42 which fits within an opening 44 of the upper sill 32. As is wellunderstood by those skilled in the art, the quick-release member 42 tswithin the opening 44 and by turning apn; proximately a quarter of aturn secures the upper flange 38 to the upper sill 32. Of course, bymerely reversing the quick-release member 42 a quarter turn, thequick-release member 42 will be released from hole 44 to allow the frontwall 36 to be withdrawn.

A cover member 2G is provided fitting over the top of the enclosure andalso over the top of the tank 14 in the manner particularly shown inFIG. 1 of the drawing. The removable cover 20 is provided with a lowerflange member 46 as best shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 which extends beneaththe rim of the cover 48 of the tank 14. Cover 2f) also has a forward,downwardly extending member 5t) which extends below the edge of the sidewalls 16 and 18 and over the front wall 36 in the manner shownparticularly in FIG. 3 of the drawings. As will be understood, the cover20 is placed over the enclosure by sliding it on an angle over thetransformer tank 14 and the side walls 16 and 18 until flange 46 butsagainst the transformer 14, the cover may then be pushed downward overthe side walls 16 and 18 and the front wall 36 in the manner shown. Inthis way the cover 20 completes the enclosure 18 and firmly secures thefront wall to the side walls 16 and 18. In order to gain access to thistransformer housing it is only necessary to reverse the movement; first,lifting the transformer cover upwardly away from the walls 16, 18 andfront walls 36 and then sliding it rearwardly to unhook flange 46 fromthe cover 48.

In order to divide the enclosure into a high and low voltage section adividing wall 52 is provided which is preferably bolted to the tank 14midway between walls 16 and 18, particularly in the manner indicated inFIG. 2 of the drawings. The wall 52 extends from the t-op of tank 14substantially to the pad 12 thereby dividing the enclosure 10 into a lowvoltage compartment 54 and a high voltage compartment 56 particularly asindicated in FIGS. 2 and 4 of the drawings. As will be understood, wall52 can be made lof any desired size, consistent with the number and typeof high voltage connections used. Various connections extend outwardlyfrom the transformer tank 14 into both the high and low voltagecompartments to provide for the desired high and low voltage connectionsto the transformer within the tank 14. Inasmuch as these connectionsform no part of this invention, the various connections to thetransformer are not shown in the drawings.

In order to provide a desired locking means for the enclosure 111 toprevent unauthorized entry thereto the novel locking means preferredwill now be described. As shown particularly in FIGS. 2 and 3 of thedrawings, a lug member 58 is secured to the side wall 18 and extendsinto the low voltage compartment 54. A second lug member 68 is securedto the cover 28 and similarly extends into the low voltage compartment54. Lug 58 is provided with a hole 62 while lug 611 is provided with ahole 64. As can be seen, especially from FIG. 3 of the drawings, theholes are complementary and substantially in line with each other. Amovable bar member 66 is provided which extends through an opening 67 inflange 24 of side wall 18 and also through openings 62 and 64 in themanner shown in both FIGS. 2 and 3 of the drawings. The bar member 66 isprovided with a locking plate 68 at one end thereof, the locking platehaving an opening 70 therein. A third lug member '72 is provided whichis secured to flange 24 of wall 18 beneath cover 20 in the manner shownparticularly in FIGS. l and 2 of the drawings. The lug 72 is similarlyprovided with a hole 74 therein and when the bar member 66 is in itslocking position through the openings in lugs 58 and 60 the hole 74 isin line with the hole 72. A padlock may then be secured through lug 72and locking plate 70 to firmly lock the bar 66 in its locked position.As can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3, with the bar 66 extending through theopenings in plate 58 and 68 the cover member 2t) is securely locked tothe side wall 18 and cannot be removed. In this manner a novel lockingmeans is provided which is substantially hidden by the cover 26providing an easily accessible locking means to allow authorized entryto the enclosure and yet is unobtrusive and has no projecting partswhich could injure children who might play about the transformerenclosure 1t). The novel locking means will firmly hold the enclosuresecurely locked preventing any unauthorized entry and yet readily allowsauthorized persons to enter the enclosure 10 to perform any desiredservice or maintenance to the transformer connections within the low orhigh voltage sections 54 and 56. Of course it will be understood thatentry to the enclosure 10 may be obtained by unlocking the cover byremoving bar 66 from lug 68, then lifting cover 26 and sliding it to therear sufficiently to clear the front wall 36. The front wall 36 i maythen be readily removed and the desired service performed to either thelow or high voltage sections 54 and 56.

FIGURE shows a modification of the locking means in which the bar 66' isprovided, having a pin member 76 which prevents complete removal of thebar 66. In this modification, pin member 76 is placed in bar 66 adjacentthe cover lug 60 when bar 66 is in its locking position as shown in FIG.5. When bar 66' is unlocked from the lug 72 the bar may be withdrawnfrom opening 64 in the cover lug 60 until it clears the cover lug.However, due to pin 76 the bar 66' may not be Withdrawn through the sidewall lug 58. With this modification there is no danger of the bar 66'dropping into the low voltage section 54 as it is being removed from thelug 58. Further, since the bar will remain in the transformer housingthere will be no problem of misplacing the bar 66 while the enclosure 10is open.

Referring to FIGURES 6, 7 and 8 there is shown a preferred barriermember for the high voltage ysection of the transformer enclosure 10. Aswill be understood by those skilled in this art, when the transformerenclosure 10 is opened it is `desired that the high voltage section bestill inaccessible to prevent accidental contact with any of the highvoltage terminals in this section. In order to provide this high voltagebarrier, a barrier member 78 may be provided which is made of anyinsulating fiber or plastic material. The barrier member 78 fits instirrups 80 in the lower sill 34 and stirrups 82 in the upper sill 32. Ahandle member may be provided such as handle 84 in the barrier 78 toallow maneuvering of such barrier. AS will be understood, the barrier isplaced in position as shown in FIG. 6 by engaging the barrier 78 betweenstirrups 82 and the upper sill member 32. The barrier is then raised toits uppermost position between stirrups 82 and sill 32 until the lowerend of barrier 78 clears the sill 34. The barrier is then lowered intothe stirrupsv 80 between the stirrups 80 and the sill 34. As can beseen, especially in FIG. 8 of the drawings, when the barrier is restingon the stirrups 80 the top portion of barrier 78 is still held betweenstirrups 82 and the upper sill 32. Obviously to remove the barrier it isonly necessary to reverse the above procedure. It will be understoodthat sufficient clearance is provided between sill 34 and barrier 78 toallow front wall 36 to be connected as earlier described.

Barrier member 78 is provided with slot 86 in the lower portion of thebarrier, as can be most clearly seen from FIGS. 6 and 7. The slot 86 isused in the manner shown in FIG. 7 to provide a dual use of barrier 78.As shown in FIG. 7, after the barrier is removed from the high voltagesection 56 the barrier may be turned 90 and by means of slot 86 placedin a straddle position over the lower sill 34 and against the side wall16. In this position of the barrier, service may be provided to thevarious high voltage connections by means of a hot stick without dangerof contacting the side wall 16. In other Words, the barrier 78 in theposition shown in FIG. 7 acts as an insulation against the side wall 16,while electric utility personnel are working on the high voltageconnections in the high voltage section. As will be apparent thisprovides an additional utility to the barrier 78 and also prevents itfrom being placed on the ground or in other positions where it mightbecome subject to damage while work is being performed within thetransformer housing 10.

While there has been shown and described the present preferredembodiments of the transformer housing of this invention and thepreferred locking means for use therewith, it will be understood thatvarious changes may be made in the connections and in the shapes of thevarious members Without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention particularly as is set forth in the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed as new and which it is desired t-o secure by LettersPatent of the United States is:

1. A transformer housing for use with a pad mounted transformercomprising, in combination, a transformer tank, a pair of side wallmembers secured to opposite sides of said transformer tank, sill membersconnecting the free ends of the side Walls, a removable front wallmember engaging one of said sill members and being in contact with theother sill member, a removable cover member, said removable cover memberhaving a flange in the rear thereof interlocking with the cover of saidtransformer tank, and the front end of said cover extending over saidremovable front wall firmly securing said removable front wall to saidenclosure.

2. A transformer housing as claimed in claim 1 in which locking meansare provided, said locking means including a first lug member secured tosaid removable cover and extending into said housing, a second lugmember secured to yone of said side walls and extending into saidhousing, said first and said second lug members having complementaryopenin-gs therethrough, a bar member extending through an opening insaid one of said side walls and through said complementary openings insaid first and said second lug members.

3. A transformer housing as claimed in claim 2 in which said bar memberis provided with a locking plate and a third lug member is secured tosaid one of said side walls on the exterior thereof and adjacent saidopening therein, said locking plate and said third lug havingcomplementary openings therethrough for locking said bar in oneposition.

4. A transformer enclosure for a pad mounted transformer comprising, incombination, a transformer tank having a cover thereon, a pair of sidewall members secured to opposite sides of said transformer tank, a thirdwall member secured to said transformer tank intermediate said side wallmembers, a pair of sill members secured to the free end of said sidewall members, a removable front wall engaging one of said sill membersand being in contact with the other sill member, a quick-releaseconnection securing said front wall member to said other sill member, aremovable cover, said removable cover having a flange member engagingbeneath said cover of said transformer tank, and a downwardly extendingportion of said cover member engaging the front wall to firmly securethe enclosure.

5. A transformer enclosure as claimed in claim 4 in which locking meansare provided, said locking means including a first lug member secured tosaid removable cover and extending into said enclosure, a second lugmember secured to one of said pair of side wall members and extendinginto said enclosure, said first and said second lug members havingcomplementary openings therethrough, a bar member extending through anopening in said one of said pair of side wall members and through saidcomplementary openings in said first and said second lug members, alocking plate on said bar member exterior of said enclosure, a third lugmember secured to said one of said pair of side walls exteriorly thereofand adjacent said opening therein, said locking plate and said third lughaving complementary openings therethrough whereby said bar may belocked against said third l-ug.

6. A transformer enclosure for a pad mounted transformer comprising, incombination, a transformer tank having a cover thereon, a pair of sidewall members secured to opposite sides of said transformer tank, a thirdwall member secured to said transformer tank intermediate said side wallmembers, dividing said enclosure in two sections, a pair of sill memberssecured to the free end of said side wall members, an insulation barrierfor one of said two sections, stirrups on each of said sill members atsaid one section, said insulation barrier held in place by said stirrupsand said sill members, a slot in one end of said barrier whereby saidbarrier may Ibe rotated and straddle one of said sill members, aremovable sermone front Wall engaging one of said sill members and beingin Contact with the other sill member, a quick-release connectionsecu-ring said front wall member to said other sill member, a removablecover, said removable cover having a flange member engaging beneath saidcover of said transformer tank, and a downwardly extending portion ofsaid cover member engaging the front Wall to firmly secure theenclosure.

7. A locking means for a transformer housing which includes a pair ofside Walls, a removable front Wall and a removable cover member, saidremovable cover member having an extending portion engaging saidremovable front Wall, said locking means comprising, in combination, afirst lug mounted on one of said side walls and extending into saidhousing and having an opening therethrough, a second lug member securedto said removable cover and extending into said housing and having anopening therein complementary to said opening in said first lug, a thirdlug secured to said side wall at the exterior thereof and having memberextending through an opening in said side wall, said bar extendingthrough said complementary openings in said first and said second lugs,said bar having a locking plate at an end thereof which is complementarywith said third lug when said =bar member is in locked position,

an opening therein and a movable bar an opening in said locking platefor reception of a padlock for locking said locking plate to said thirdlug.

8. A locking means for a transformer housing as claimed in claim 7 inwhich said first lug is intermediate said second lug and said third lugand said bar member is provided with a stop means between said secondand said first lug to allow said `bar to be withdrawn from said openingin said second lug lbut preventing said bar from being withdrawn fromsaid opening in said first lug.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 526,491 9/1894Jones 292 145 1,891,959 12/1932 sprong 174-37X 2,707,646 5/1955 Hazy292148 2,809,766 10/1957 Anderson 22o- 29X 2,932,771 4/1960 C1-aven217-99 3,014,158 12/1961 Neisonetal 174-52X FOREIGN PATENTS 233,0443/1960 Austraiia.

LEWTS H. MYERS, Primary Examiner. H. W. COLLINS, Assistant Examiner.

1. A TRANSFORMER HOUSING FOR USE WITH A PAD MOUNTED TRANSFORMERCOMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A TRANSFORMER TANK, A PAIR OF SIDE WALLMEMBERS SECURED TO OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID TRANSFORMER TANK, SILL MEMBERSCONNECTING THE FREE ENDS OF THE SIDE WALLS, A REMOVABLE FRONT WALLMEMBER ENGAGING ONE OF SAID SILL MEMBERS AND BEING IN CONTACT WITH THEOTHER SILL MEMBER, A REMOVABLE COVER MEMBER, SAID REMOVABLE COVER MEMBERHAVING A FLANGE IN THE REAR THEREOF INTERLOCKING WITH THE COVER OF SAIDTRANSFORMER TANK, AND THE FRONT END OF SAID COVER EXTENDING OVER SAIDREMOVABLE FRONT WALL FIRMLY SECURING SAID REMOVABLE FRONT WALL TO SAIDENCLOSURE.